Braids
by RavenStyx
Summary: Spiders weaved with delicate limbs. Laxus? He fumbled and stumbled and sometimes pulled by accident. (Rated T for language.)


**Warnings:** I'm trying fluff. Be advised. **_T_** for language, possibly (I don't remember anymore but I swear for _everything_.)

For **ikathy** , whom I drunkenly accepted a fluff-writing challenge from.

 _Fairy Tail belongs to Hiro Mashima_

* * *

 ** _Braids_**

* * *

Spiders weaved with delicate limbs. Laxus? He fumbled and stumbled and sometimes pulled by accident. Sometimes, there was a sharp intake of breath from his daughter but she never got frustrated and told him to stop so Laxus tried to never show her that he was frustrated, either.

Today, Lena wanted pigtails. Braided pigtails. But not _just_ braided pigtails. French braided. Nothing else would do.

Laxus took his time despite the clock ticking away—he had to get her to preschool and start work in less than thirty minutes. It took twenty to get into town and another five to get to the Constabulary. If he utilized the portable lights he'd pilfered from the Constabulary for days like these, he might make it in time. Maybe. In actuality, he'd probably be at least fifteen minutes behind.

The blonde downy duck fluff of his daughter's hair was dampened with a Sponge Bob Squarepants spray bottle in hopes of helping Laxus twist it into something presentable. It was a trick Miss Strauss, Lena's new ECE, shared last week when Lena came into her room with tufts poking out of every braid loop. Laxus remembered Miss Strauss' mouth curling when she'd seen Lena that morning. Her eyes had come up to Laxus' and there was laughter in them. She never let it escape. She came over, touched his elbow and passed along the secret technique dads just didn't innately know. He'd been thinking of asking her out for dinner that weekend but after that, he was too embarrassed. When Lena came home that night, he practiced on her hair again, damp this time, so the next day it looked only a little bit like she'd stuck her finger in an electrical socket.

Miss Strauss had given him a wide smile and nod of approval that morning.

"You're going to be late for work, Daddy," Lena said sagely from her spot on the white tiled floor between his feet.

"Can't rush a good thing."

"I thought it looked good yesterday."

"It looked better than the day before," Laxus conceded. "I can do better than that, though."

She hummed like she didn't really believe him. "Are we going to drive with the flashy lights?"

Laxus glanced at the clock as he wrapped a pink tie around her fine hair. He was even later than yesterday. Jellal was going to be pissed. "Definitely. Come on, you're all done."

Lena stood and touched her hair. "It's French?"

It sure didn't look anything like Scarlet Johansson's French braid when Laxus looked up a picture to go off of but he thought it was pretty damn good, considering. "Oui, oui."

"Like Pepe?"

That was the only French word he knew otherwise he'd say something smart. "Just like him."

"Do you like Miss Strauss like Pepe likes the cat?"

Laxus frowned. "Where did you get that idea from?"

"Uncle Jelly told me that's why you're always late, you're trying to impress her with your braids."

"Uncle Jelly is just jealous he can't braid," Laxus muttered. He scooped Lena up and grabbed his Sierra's keys off the counter. Lena's arms locked around his neck and, as always, he thought she could be enough. It didn't matter if raising her on his own was tough, it didn't matter if he had to pay exorbitant amounts of money when he was habitually late picking her up from preschool and Miss Strauss waited for him to arrive. It didn't matter that Jellal was cranky when he was late for work and always made Laxus buy the coffee. He wouldn't change this for anything.

"Maybe _he_ wants to talk to Miss Strauss instead of you."

Laxus laughed. "Could be." Not likely; he'd seen the way his partner looked at Dispatch's Erza Scarlet. He locked the door of the small bungalow his grandfather left to him and unlocked the truck he'd bought with his last bonus. Lena went into the car seat in the back and didn't squirm as he buckled her in or scream like she used to when she was a baby.

"Maybe you can teach Uncle Jelly to do my hair next time and Miss Strauss—"

"Stop selling me out, kid."

"Uncle Jelly said—"

Laxus stood and closed the door, otherwise, he'd talk circles with her and they'd never leave and 'Uncle Jelly' would be requesting a new partner. Who else could Laxus bribe with caffeine when he was chronically chronologically challenged?

When he put on the lights, Lena clapped from the backseat.

* * *

Miss Strauss examined Lena's braids with a practiced eye from Laxus' side while Lena loped to one of her friends and started playing with large letter blocks. There was no time for Laxus to linger and garner her approval but linger he did.

"They look better," she decreed. "But still not right."

"I looked up a picture of Scarlett Johansson," Laxus said defensively. His phone was buzzing in his pocket; that would be Jellal wondering where he was, without doubt.

"Hmm... did you look up a tutorial, too?" she asked.

"Yeah." He scrubbed his hair. Would Lena look good with short hair? It would certainly help his predicament. Maybe not. He liked her messy and curly-when-it-was-humid locks. "They went really fast, though."

Miss Strauss smiled. "I can show you."

"I don't have time right now—"

"I meant tonight," she said. "Unless you're busy after? It won't take long..."

"No, no. That's fine. Good. That's good." Fantastic, in fact. But, "Maybe…" He used to be better at this.

Her attention was divided, caught on a boy who was mock picking his nose and shoving it in his friend's face. "Stop that, Joseph." The boy looked thoroughly scolded. Laxus' phone buzzed again. He put his hands in his pocket and squeezed the sides, hoping that it would stop.

"Sorry, pardon?" she asked with more focus.

"Do you want to come out for dinner with us? Me and Lena." He'd never been a blurter. Why did he blurt that? So jaggedly, too.

Miss Strauss looked surprised. She looked down at his ring finger and saw that it was empty

"It's just me," Laxus felt obligated to say.

Her skin flushed when she was caught. She covered it up well. "Sorry."

From outside came the loud blaring of a horn. Laxus' phone started to ring again. He didn't need to look out the window to see the MPD cruiser waiting. "That's my partner."

"You're late."

And causing a spectacle. All the children were turning one by one to peek out the window. "I'll just—"

"Goodbye, Laxus." She waggled her fingers and smiled wryly.

"Bye, Miss Strauss."

"Mirajane. Mira," she added.

"Mira," Laxus repeated. "Right. Was that a yes?"

Her smile got larger. "That's a, I'll think about it."

"That's basically a yes."

"Basically."

Laxus left the preschool feeling both hot and light. Untouchable. Even Jellal's glower couldn't bring him down.

"Does that dumb look on your face mean you asked her out?" Jellal asked when Laxus opened the door.

"Sure did." Laxus put his seat back and watched the brick building fade away.

"Need a sitter?"

Laxus looked at Jellal from the corner of his eye. "If it goes well, maybe next time."

Jellal pulled into a coffee shop and Laxus got out his wallet without his usual griping.

* * *

 _Finito._ Bam. Man. I don't know how I feel about this. Like, here's a glimpse. And gone. Where's the violence? Where's the angst? Where is the sexual content? _How do I survive?!_

Fuck.

Thanks for reading.


End file.
